Muhammad Farooq Rehmani in a statement said that the charismatic leader of the 20th century has left behind glorious imprints of wisdom and courage on Asia only to be envied by many of his contemporaries.

He said, “As a law of Allah Jinnah couldn’t live longer after the birth of Pakistan to lead his nation-state according to his vision and perception, only to test the nerves and intend of his successors during trials and tribulations.”

“If his speeches and works before and after the partition of India could be any guide to his future vision, then one has no doubt to believe that that first and last he believed in total democracy, rule of law, good governance and an independent foreign policy. The first Islamic state established at Medina by the Prophet Muhammad (SAWS) was a real model before him without any qualms,” Rehmani added.

Iqbal and Jinnah, one as thinker another as politician, but both shared similar ideas about religion and Islam viz-a viz humanity and state and emphasized Qur’an and Sunna to be the future foundation of spiritual, social and political life of the state, he maintained. “However, both the architects of an Islamic state abhorred sectarianism, bigotry and misuse of religion for narrow selfish ends. Today Pakistan is at crossroads internally and externally, from ideological, geographical and constitutional angles and its enemies in or outside exceed friends, who want to run the state according to their diverging and clashing aims and interests.”

Therefore, national issues of Pakistan have lost sight of and the people are in despondency. In such a nerve-breaking environment, the Pakistanis should look to their foundation, not under estimate or ignore the sacrifices of the past generations for Pakistan, he advised. “The people should optimistically get inspiration from the life and struggle of Quaid-i-Azam for their better times and strengthen democracy, and rule of law in the country,” he concluded.
(KMS)